Beirut, 27 April 2012 The Lebanese-American University (LAU) was the host of a consultation meeting held by the Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED), to discuss the first draft of a report on ecological footprint and the options for sustainability in the Arab world. The meeting afforded report authors and editors the opportunity to […]

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Andre Fecteau Thu, 26/04/2012 Presented as the solution to Egypt’s demographic and economic issues, and the Arab World’s largest and most expensive engineering enterprise, the Toshka New Valley project has now very little to show except for evidence of ill-informed political decisions. Toshka’s premise was simple yet grandiose: to dig a 240 kilometer canal out […]

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by Taylor Luck | Apr 27,2012 | 00:32 AMMAN — Jordan moved one step closer to a “smart” power grid on Thursday with the launch of a series of studies to prepare for the biggest upgrade of the Kingdom’s electricity infrastructure in over 30 years. Under an agreement signed on Thursday by the US Trade […]

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Planned expansion of Kfar Vradim would increase the population by 50 percent. By Zafrir Rinat A recently approved expansion of the Galilee town of Kfar Vradim has drawn fire from environmental groups, though the town council insists the plan took environmental concerns into account. The expansion plan, approved by the northern district planning and building […]

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Sewage from East Jerusalem has been flowing untreated through the valley for years. By Zafrir Rinat Efforts are underway to rehabilitate Jerusalem’s Kidron Valley, one of the most polluted valleys in either Israel or the Palestinian Authority. The sewage running through the valley, which begins in East Jerusalem and winds its way eastward down to […]

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Early in the state’s history, munitions and other factories irrevocably damaged the soil. So why are we making similar mistakes decades later? By Zafrir Rinat A few years after I began working as an environmental affairs correspondent, I received a phone call from a water expert. He told me what only a handful of scientists […]

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Construction in Israel over the next three decades will require an estimated 290 million tons of sand, an essential construction component, according to a survey conducted for the Interior Ministry. By Zafrir Rinat The Rotem Plain in the south could be Israel’s major reservoir for construction sand in the coming decades. Using sand from Rotem […]

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April 26, 2012 01:32 AM By Stephen Dockery BEIRUT: To grow a tree in Lebanon’s semi-arid soil, roots must be long and dense, and carefully pre-grown in a nursery so a young seedling can leech the deeply buried nutrients from the ground. The fragile seedlings must be hardened during a period of drought before being […]

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April 27, 2012 01:38 AM By Rakan al-Fakih HERMEL, Lebanon: The road home for residents of the Bekaa town of Hermel is lit up for the first time, with the Transport Ministry now putting the final touches on new solar powered street lights in the area. Seven hundred sixty-six light posts were erected along the […]

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Egypt terminates gas deal with Israel Al Jazeera Top official insists decision was not political as Israel says it overshadows peace agreement between the two countries. The head of the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company has said it has terminated its contract to ship gas to Israel because of violations of contractual obligations, a decision […]

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Water distribution programme to remain unchanged by Hana Namrouqa | Apr 22,2012 | 22:30 AMMAN — With the arrival of thousands of Syrian refugees in Jordan and the return of expatriates in summer, the Kingdom’s water supply is expected to face severe strain in the coming months, a government official said on Saturday. As the […]

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By ISABEL KERSHNER Published: April 20, 2012 KETURA, Israel — Arriving at this bone-dry kibbutz in the Arava Desert late one afternoon in August 2006, Yosef Abramowitz, a social activist, Jewish educator and multimedia entrepreneur from Boston, opened the door of his van and was hit by a wall of heat. “The sun was setting, […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 04/20/2012 01:37 Move made in effort to make one stronger green party that can compete in elections out of two competing factions. In an effort to secure stronger political clout on both national and local levels, most Green Party city council members are splitting from their organization to officially join the Green […]

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April 20, 2012 01:40 AM By Eduard Gismatullin Israel’s biggest gas discovery, potentially turning the fuel importer into an exporter, is prompting a race by nations from Lebanon to Turkey to tap similar deposits in disputed waters of the East Mediterranean. Noble Energy is developing the Leviathan and Tamar fields off Israel that hold about […]

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The local authorities of Tamra and Kabul were not told of the alternative to set up the reservoir nearby because the designated area is outside their jurisdiction. By Jack Khoury An Arab NGO warned this week that any decision to set up a natural gas facility near the Galilee towns Tamra and Kabul would endanger […]

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Minister: PA may drill for oil in West Bank Published Friday 20/04/2012 (updated) 21/04/2012 19:31 BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — A team of experts is researching the possibility of drilling for oil in the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority minister of state said Friday. Mahir Ghneim told Ma’an that international and local experts started research months ago […]

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HEBRON, April 19, 2012 (WAFA) – The Israeli authorities Thursday ordered residents of Khirbet Umm Sidra, an area south of Hebron, to remove the power grid that supplies their residences with electricity, according to a local source. Omar Jaffal said officers from the civil administration, the Israeli military government’s arm in the West Bank, handed […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 04/17/2012 03:59 The exercises will also examine the IEC’s ability to transfer updated information to its customers, according to the company. The Israel Electric Corporation began a week-long, comprehensive exercise on Monday morning to assess the country’s preparedness for the high electricity demands and power shortages expected during the coming summer. “We […]

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Barrier threatens Batir’s unique way of life – and a 63-year-old agreement with Moshe Dayan. By Nir Hasson Most of the world manages with a seven-day week, but the Palestinian village of Batir lives on an eight-day cycle. The reason is a sophisticated system of allocating water from the village’s wells among the eight large […]

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The introduction of a model water code in the Mediterranean region could contribute to water law reform and promote equitable allocation and sustainable use of water resources. Growing water scarcity around the world means water laws need to be modernized and reformed, particularly in arid regions such as the Mediterranean. Sustainable practices – both ancient […]

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